Shallow Cuts for Big Shine

Gold never loses its luster. Likewise, the handcrafted artistry of Signs of Gold (Williamsville, NY) ensures creations like Francis Lestingi’s sign for Swanson & Birkby Associates Wealth Management will last a long time.

Lestingi placed Gerber Mask I over the fully coated mahogany panel, used chisels and gouges to incise the shallow, main text (see ST, October 2006, page 90 for a how-to) and applied primer and a glossy topcoat.

He sanded the mask edges after three undercoats and three topcoats; Lestingi said it’s easer to lose those layers of coats and sizing now, rather than pull them up when it’s time to remove the vinyl.

He then added Le Franc Charbonell size. Although some signmakers add color to their sizing, Lestingi said adding so much color could change the nature of the size. Instead, he used kaolin powder over the black topcoat. “It’s so infinitesimally thin that it doesn’t add much foreign material to the size,” he said.

Lestingi applied Sepp’s 23k patent goldleaf around the sign’s rim. A white sable brush removed the excess while lightly pressing the gilding into the sides.

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Sepp loose-leaf gold went onto the carved letters. “If you were to push patent gold into the letter, you’d be missing spots and have to go back over it,” Lestingi explained. At 23½k, it may have more gold, but the loose leaf isn’t sturdy. “The loose leaf is .001 in. thick,” he said. “It would dissolve in your hands.”

Instead, he used a $35 Siberian squirrel-hair brush and something found in any drugstore: lip balm. After having dabbed the balm from his hand, he finds the goldleaf effortlessly stays on the brush.

The sign sits for a day or two before the mask comes off, even though the size will still be curing after the sign is installed. “But don’t touch it,” Lestingi said. “Even your finger would leave a print.” Still, he advises against using a topcoat, as the gold would lose some of its brilliance.